In the husbandry of turkeys and other large birds, it is frequently necessary to transfer the birds to cages, e.g. for transport to market or simply to move the birds from one place to another. A typical vehicle for the transportation of turkeys comprises a multiplicity of cages stacked upon one another and disposed in rows along the back of a transporter or truck. The turkeys, generally raised in flocks, must be transferred in given number to each of the cages of the truck in succession.
The transfer of turkeys is usually a cumbersome, tiring and difficult process. If the transfer is to be effected by hand, each individual bird must be caught and carried to the cage opening and pushed inside. This is a particularly onerous task since turkeys can be heavy and the procedure is exceedingly tiresome.
As turkey-raising farms have increased in size, there has been considerable effort expended in improving the technique whereby turkeys are deposited in cages or other transportable enclosures for transfer to market or to a turkey processing station. In general such devices have comprised a conveyor belt which is tilted upwardly so that the upper end terminates at the cage while the other end terminates at an enclosure for the turkeys.
Such a device has considerable advantages over hand loading but has not proved to be entirely satisfactory.
For example, it is not always sufficiently mobile to allow transfer of turkeys, especially when the vehicle cannot be properly positioned with respect to the discharge end of the conveyor.
Furthermore, long conveyors of the type which have been found necessary heretofore are exceedingly expensive and difficult to operate efficiently especially when large numbers of turkeys are to be transferred to different locations or to different vehicles. Finally, the conventional conveyors for the transfer of turkeys and other birds, raised upon a farm, are not economically feasible for small farms in which the loader is only used for a brief period during the year.
For these reasons considerable effort has been expended to improve upon turkey-loading techniques even though the aforementioned conveyor has received wide-spread acceptance at least upon larger farms.